Did you watch the republican debate last night?

Yeah, it was a veritable sh*t show, but one of the biggest takeaways was Ted Cruz coming at Donald Trump with a weird and wholly inaccurate accusation. 

Cruz was questioned on Tuesday about Trump's affinity for playing "Born in the USA" at rallies (a dig at Cruz - he was born in Canada, if you haven't heard), Cruz said, "I think he may shift in his new rallies to play 'New York, New York.' Because Donald comes from New York and he embodies New York values."

We beg to differ. Trump is just about the furthest from New York values we could imagine. He's a bully, and bullies have no place in the New York City mindset.

When Cruz was asked what he meant by New York Values in last night's debate, Cruz said "I think most people know exactly what New York values are. Everyone understands that the values in New York are socially liberal."

Hell yeah we are, and hell no, Donald Trump does not jive with our mindset. Trump's response?

"We rebuilt downtown Manhattan and everybody in the world watched and everybody in the world loved New York and loved New Yorkers. And I have to tell you, that was a very insulting statement that Ted made."

Trump may love New York, but he seems to have no idea what New York values actually are. Hey Trump, being called "liberal" is not an insult. We'll be glad to share with you what #NewYorkValues actually are.

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1. We celebrate diversity 

This is probably the reason we're most opposed to Trump and everything to do with him as he's proven himself to be a closed-minded, bigoted bully. 

So, his closed-minded biases are probably the main reason we'll never align him with New York values.

Trump infamously said, "When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best ... They're sending people that have lots of problems, and they're bringing those problems with us. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists."

Real New Yorkers, Trump, would never slam an entire ethnic group with a perpetuation of racist stereotypes. We are proud to be the most culturally diverse city in the world. 

[anad]

When an NBC reporter asked Trump, "Should there be a database or system that tracks Muslims in this country?"

Trump responded, "There should be a lot of systems, beyond databases. I mean, we should have a lot of systems ... But right now we have to have a border, we have to have strength, we have to have a wall, and we cannot let what's happening in this country happen any longer."

This was later twisted to reflect Trump's rallying for such a database vehemently, but still, anyone with New York values would have responded, "Hell no," and followed it up with a, "F*ck you."

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2. Gender equality

Which brings us to our next point: equality. Trump has proved, far and away, that he believes in equality for wealthy white males, and wealthy white males alone.

In New York, when it comes to a woman's right to her own body, we are proud to support the right to choose. New York's abortion laws are less restrictive than many other states. We don't long waiting periods, consent requirements, and strict facility codes other states have.

Basically, the only abortion laws we have in New York are that it has to be within the first 24 weeks of pregnancy or necessary to preserve the mother's life, and that it must be done by a licensed doctor.

Recently, Trump has spoken out against abortion, saying that he's "now pro-life, after years of being pro-choice." Of course, the main thing under attack here is Planned Parenthood, which, while it does provide abortion services, provides countless other services for women's healthcare.

"I'm pro-life. I am against gun control. I will fight to end Obamacare," Trump told the Conservative Political Action Conference. Does that sound like something someone who aligned himself with New York values would say? We didn't think so.

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3. The right to marry equally

Gay marriage has been legal in NYC since 2011, four years before the rest of the country followed suit. The gay rights movement started here, at the Stonewall Inn, and last summer Stonewall was declared a gay liberation monument. 

Since supporting equality is an important pillar of New York values, it makes sense we'd support everyone's right to marry, regardless of who they love.

When Trump was asked whether he agreed with gay marriage on air with Howard Stern, Stern said, "Donald, go on the record. You're for gay marriage." 

[anad2]

To which Trump responded, "Well, I'm not." Thanks again, Trump. Admittedly, Trump has spoken out saying there's no way the same sex marriage law would be overturned.

"Some people have hopes of passing amendments, but it's not going to happen. Congress can't pass simple things, let alone that. So anybody that's making that an issue is doing it for political reasons. The Supreme Court ruled on it."

Still, just because Trump recognizes that a basic human rights issue is written into law doesn't mean he agrees with it.

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4. The right to safety

When we heard yesterday that Mayor de Blasio devised an entire new system dedicated to handling gun crimes in NYC, including a 200-officer police division dedicated solely to gun crimes and a special court, we were relieved.

We're tired of New Yorkers lying dead in the streets. We want our kids to grow up.

So no, Trump's staunch support of the Second Amendment does not align with New York values. You know, those values where we want to end violence, not pave the way for it to continue. 

[anad]

To be clear, gun control is not taking rights away from law-abiding citizens. It holds law-abiding citizens accountable by requiring they obtain their arms through strictly legal means. 

On Trump's campaign website, it reads, "The Second Amendment guarantees a fundamental right that belongs to all law-abiding Americans. The Constitution doesn't create that right - it ensures that the government can't take it away."

Right. That's fine. The thing is, though, because too many law-violating citizens are getting guns illegally, we have to take measures to eliminate that, such as the minor inconvenience of closing gun-show loopholes where people can arm themselves without proper background checks. 

We think the culture of mass shootings in the United States is teetering towards maniacal lunacy, and turns out, Cuomo and de Blasio seem to agree. So, no, we don't think Trump aligns with New York's values on this one, either.

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5. Hustle & grind

Our favorite thing about NYC is that we're always running. We're always pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps, and hurdling obstacles to succeed.

We think Trump's pushing down those he perceives as weaker is the antithesis to the hustle mindset. Judging people by their ethnicity or gender is the exact opposite of hustle culture. Hustle is all about rewarding those who try the hardest.

Bigotry does the exact opposite. It is about degrading those of a lower stature, or designating those of a different race or ethnicity to those perceived lower statures. 

Bigotry is the false confidence of happenstance and inheritance. It's the debilitating fear that those who have not aren't working for it, but that they will try and take it unearned. 

[anad2]

Trump did inherit a lot of money from his father, it's estimated he inherited between $40 million and $200 million. Trump's inheritance doesn't make him a bad person, however, he's not rich because he's worked for it or endured the daily grind. 

Anyone who tries to tell you that's been blinded by cultural rhetoric or ignores the fact that he's the worst kind of hustler there is: bankrupt, both morally and financially. 

Sure, the four times his companies have declared bankruptcy weren't entirely his fault, but to leave Atlantic City in the distress he has... well, he's done so at not nearly such a debilitating cost to himself. Contrary to what our culture would have us believe, being born rich does not make you a better person.

Check out 7 Things We Wish Our Non-New Yorker Parents Would Learn to Accept About NYC. 

[Feature Image Courtesy Vanity Fair]